Monday, October 21, 2013

Dispatch #13: Comparative Titles

by Lupe Fernandez

During many a SCBWI conference or workshop, the audience is advised to use comparative titles when pitching their manuscript, such as Harry Potter meets Dr. Seuss or Curious George meets Twilight.

Here in the vast wilderness of the Northern Hinderlands, I have created a few modest comparative titles for future query letter.

 Picture Books
  • Good Night Moon meets Apollo 13 (The Lost Moon)
  • The Story of Ferdinand meets The Jungle
  • Curious George meets Gorilla's in the Mist
  • Clic Clac Moo meets Animal Farm
  • Polar Express meets The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition



Middle Grade
  • A Wrinkle in Time meets Gone with The Wind
  • The Lightning Thief meets Like Water for Chocolate
  • Ella Enchanted meets The Handmaid's Tale
  • Charlotte's Web meets Pride and Prejudice
  • The Borrowers meets Atlas Shrugged



Young Adult
  • The Hobbit meets Valley of the Dolls
  • Lord of the Flies meets The Scarlet Letter
  • The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants meets The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
  • Vampire Academy meets Fast Food Nation
  • The Forest of Hands and Teeth meets Anna Karenina


These are a few of my favorite comparative titles.
Do you have any?
Care to share?
If you dare...
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9 comments:

  1. Susan B JamesOctober 21, 2013 at 12:51 PM

    Well I entered a comment and it disappeared.! My favorite is Vampire Academy meets Fast Food Nation. What's your working title?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Pen and Ink BlogspotOctober 21, 2013 at 2:17 PM

      My working title is a cross between Twilight and Captain Underpants.
      Sincerely,
      Count Fruit O' the Loom

      Delete
  2. Susan B JamesOctober 21, 2013 at 12:52 PM

    The problem was ith Google Chrome. It worked on Firefox

    ReplyDelete
  3. UnknownOctober 21, 2013 at 1:47 PM

    Great post. Clever and well thought through! I must say, Lupe, your posts are fun!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Pen and Ink BlogspotOctober 21, 2013 at 2:18 PM

      Thanks, Ms. Nancy.
      Sincerely,
      Treasure Island Meets Good Night Moon

      Delete
  4. Kai Strand, AuthorOctober 21, 2013 at 6:42 PM

    Vampire Academy meets Fast Food Nation is so funny! My current YA wip is National Treasure meets Wuthering Heights.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Pen and Ink BlogspotOctober 22, 2013 at 7:56 AM

      Dear Kai,
      Fascinating combination. I'm also working on a manuscript that is Pride and Prejudice meets Das Kapital.
      Sincerely,
      Ship of Fools meets Once is Not Enough

      Delete
  5. AnonymousOctober 21, 2013 at 8:28 PM

    Ok, my work in progress is The Parent Trap meets ¿Qué pasa U. S. A.?- (yes, 1970's tv show in Miami starring Rocky Echevrría aka- Stephen Bauer, but when your WIP is set in 1980 in Miami with Cuban twins as your MC's, well, how can you not compare it to the quintessential Miami hit?) They went 3 seasons without ever saying the F Word- Fidel, that is.

    I wonder if the vampires found anything to eat in Fast Food Nation?

    As always, great post Lupe.

    Hilde;D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Pen and Ink BlogspotOctober 22, 2013 at 7:57 AM

      How about Fast Food Nation meets The Bible?
      Sincerely,
      Spiderman meets Death of a Salesman

      Delete

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